


Don’t Read the Last Page (New Year’s Day)

by thisismk



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Falling In Love, First Kiss, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, HYUNSUNG, Han Jisung | Han is a Sweetheart, Hwang Hyunjin is Whipped, Hwang Hyunjin-centric, I Will Go Down With This Ship, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Introspection, Light Angst, Love Confessions, M/M, New Year Eve Party, New Year's Eve, New Year's Kiss, New York City, Spongebob Voice: The Gang's All Here, Will they or won’t they, blondesung is supreme, i just love them so much, soft soft soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-04
Updated: 2020-01-04
Packaged: 2021-02-27 14:42:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,210
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22108801
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thisismk/pseuds/thisismk
Summary: What was originally a few close friends and some spiked eggnog had steadily morphed into one of the most anticipated parties of the year, and Hyunjin was used to ringing in the new year with alcohol on his breath and a stranger on his lips. This year would be different, though. This year he was bringing Jisung.✩ ✩ ✩Or; the one where Hyunjin takes Jisung to his friends' annual New Year's Eve party, hoping that when the glitter was swept away and the bottles were cleared, they would still have each other.
Relationships: Han Jisung | Han/Hwang Hyunjin
Comments: 14
Kudos: 254





	Don’t Read the Last Page (New Year’s Day)

**Author's Note:**

> Here is a little one-shot to celebrate ringing in a new decade! I listened to Taylor Swift’s “New Year’s Day” on repeat for three hours while I wrote this, and I’d recommend listening if you’d like music while you read, as it sets the vibe pretty well. The title is a lyric from the song :) Enjoy!

**9 PM - New Years Eve**

As he spun the ring on his pinky nervously, Hyunjin thought that they were surely going to be late to the party. He wasn’t sure why he thought that they would be able to easily hail a cab on the bustling streets of New York on New Year’s Eve of all nights, but Jisung seemed to be fine with the wait. With his peacoat buttoned up to his neck and a plaid scarf pulled tight, he seemed warm enough to be content as Hyunjin frantically tried to get one of the cars to stop. 

He had walked to Jisung’s apartment to simply meet up so they could drive over together, but Jisung had insisted on pulling him inside for some pre-game shots of a deceivingly fruity-smelling liquor. Jisung had been loudly harmonizing to the indie rock song playing on the radio while he finished styling his blonde locks into something decent; Hyunjin wanted to tell him that he looked great no matter what he did to his hair, but he was only two drinks in and he didn’t quite have the courage yet. The smaller boy had continued with his one-man concert, happily oblivious. 

On the street, a cab finally had mercy on them and pulled over. As the two boys hurried into the backseat and out of the cold, Hyunjin pulled his phone out from the back pocket of his leather pants to send his friends a text that they were on the way. Once the cab doors shut, Hyunjin could barely hear the commotion of people celebrating on the streets. With Jisung making pleasant conversation with their driver, the trip to Chan's apartment passed quickly. He asked her where she usually celebrated the holiday and if she had had any memorable clients that night. While they chatted, Hyunjin did his best not to stare at his friend, but it was getting almost impossible. 

This thing between them, whatever it was, had been building for months. When they met in late March, Hyunjin had immediately been taken with Jisung’s sense of humor and passion for music. They had hung out in their larger friend group for a few weeks, just getting to know each other, and that soon led to one-on-one coffee runs and Netflix binges. While he did all of those things with his other friends too, Hyunjin knew that something was different about the way the two looked at each other. 

He thought Jisung felt it, too, the way the air felt hot and stuffy when they were alone in Jisung’s apartment, rearranging his record collection by color. Jisung had to have noticed how Hyunjin had stuttered when correcting their waiter at the diner downtown who said they made a cute couple, or how their friends had giggled during movie night when Hyunjin jumped up without prompting to refill Jisung’s glass because it was running low.

He knew that it wasn’t just him, either, because he remembered how he was the first person Jisung had told about getting the promotion, how the two of them had gradually developed the habit of texting each other goodnight, how Jisung’s hand shook when Hyunjin reached over and held it for the first time when the boy had told him about how his first love ended, wine-drunk and under the stars.

The tension seemed to grow every time the two were together, but Hyunjin felt like tonight was somehow different. Maybe it was the magic of the city celebrating the end of the decade, maybe it was that extra shot of rum, or maybe it was just so many months of them dancing around each other. Regardless, here they were, intentionally going to this party _together_ , even though everyone had been invited individually.

Their friends hosted a party every New Year’s Eve and each year it seemed to grow in size. What was originally a few close friends and some spiked eggnog had steadily morphed into one of the most anticipated parties of the year, and Hyunjin was used to ringing in the new year with alcohol on his breath and a stranger on his lips. This year would be different, though. This year he was bringing Jisung. 

As the taxi pulled up to their destination, Jisung reached over to take his hand and Hyunjin felt his heart skip. Jisung smiled to the driver, handing over a few bills. He squeezed Hyunjin’s hand three times, so quick he almost wondered if he imagined it, but then he noticed how Jisung’s full cheeks were blooming pink as the two walked through the lobby to the elevator. Hyunjin fought the urge to take his hand again as the elevator doors shut, reminding himself that they weren’t together. Not yet. Maybe not ever.

Maybe it was a touch of anxiety, or just a nosy streak that never faded, but Hyunjin had always felt the incessant need to know how things would turn out. He was the kind of person who looked up the ending to movies to see if the lead actors got together. He would read the last few pages of a book just to know the ending, to see if the story was worth reading. He didn’t like ambiguity, and regardless of the sunny disposition he showed the world, deep down he had an intense fear of making an irrevocable mistake. 

He didn’t take this fear lying down, though. He had always worked actively toward his goals, and he worked _hard._ When Hyunjin wanted something, he would work hard to achieve it and everyone respected his work ethic. He believed in creating his own luck, that the future could be planned out with care and attention, and he found a lot of comfort in that. This had led to a rigidity in his schedule that made relationships difficult, but he honestly wasn’t all that interested in looking for true love when he was working toward his goals. He was used to floating from person to person, a social butterfly that never needed to settle down. After all, what was the point of putting all that time and effort, of putting his heart on the line, for someone that may not end up sticking around? 

And yet...

Jisung felt like a big question mark. Meeting him was never part of Hyunjin’s plan when he moved to New York; he had meant to work hard at his new job, dance at the local studio to blow off steam, and spend lots of time with his friends. He was content to be the designated bachelor of their group but then Chan and Changbin had introduced him to their new coworker, a small bright boy with round cheeks and dark eyes that sparkled when he introduced himself. He had a cocky persona, a huge group of friends, and was unapologetically loud- but he also wore soft sweaters and loved cheesecake and cried during sad movies. He was the one person that Hyunjin couldn’t quite out in a box. Yet somehow instead of stressing him out as spontaneity usually did, the younger boy’s unpredictability had intrigued him- he wanted to figure him out. 

Jisung crashed into his life like messy splash of color on a pristine white wall: unexpected, but not unwelcome, the kind of art that grew on you over time. Hyunjin had spent so long planning out his days to a T that the addition of Jisung barging loudly into his life felt like being drenched in cold water on a hot day. He learned to be more flexible, going to karaoke so he could hear Jisung belt out a ballad and eating korean barbecue on a weekday, simply because they wanted to. He was learning to _enjoy_ life, not just go through the motions of living it.

For Hyunjin, Jisung was like reading the book without skipping to the end. He was taking a road trip and finding a route that wasn’t on the map, but that clearly led somewhere beautiful. So while Hyunjin still _preferred_ to know how things would turn out in life, the past few months with Jisung had convinced him that the big question mark of a boy might just be worth the gamble this time.

As Hyunjin took the last few steps up to the door on the sixth floor, it hit him like a truck that he didn’t want Jisung to ever become a stranger again. He could barely remember what life was like before him, if he was being honest. Now his life consisted of texting Jisung funny photos of the squirrel that lived in the tree outside his apartment in Manhattan, just because he knew it made him smile. It was Thursday evenings at the local coffee shop’s open mic night, with Jisung shyly rapping melodic lyrics as Hyunjin nursed a decaf latte and cheered way too loud for such a small room. It was Jisung sending takeout to Hyunjin’s office when he stayed late, even though he never actually mentioned that he had to work through lunch. They fit together, somehow. Two sides of the same coin. 

Seconds after stepping into the doorway, Chan was hollering welcomes and pulling the two into his apartment. Minho emerged from the kitchen blowing a noisemaker and immediately gestured to the table, packed to the brim with alcohol. There were endless bottles of beer and spritzers, mixers and seltzers, all shoved next to handles of liquor. Finally, four rows of plastic flutes were set up next to a few bottles of cheap champagne, ready for midnight cheers. 

Jisung gave Hyunjin’s hand three small squeezes before walking over to grab two IPAs. He had been doing that a lot lately, giving his hand little squeezes that Hyunjin felt go all the way up his body, like his heart was squeezing in his chest along with his hand. Jisung winked as he handed Hyunjin a bottle, and the two started drinking. The party began.

**10:30 PM**

Everyone was tipsy. Minho was swinging his hips in time to the pop music blasting over the stereo, Chan egging him on with one hand gripped on a beer and the other controlling the playlist. Two girls were taking turns trying to create the nastiest shot by mixing Jagermeister with tomato juice and a shot of whipped cream flavored vodka, their bangs sticking to their foreheads with sweat. Some people were cheering as someone lost at a card game and a boy was chanting “Go! Go!” as someone chugged a beer far too fast to be enjoyable. Changbin, Felix, and Jeongin were setting up another round of flip cup on the coffee table, with Seungmin gently insisting that Jeongin eat something loaded with carbs soon. A bowl of chips materialized near them soon after. 

Hyunjin’s feet hurt from dancing and two strangers were making out in the corner next to him, but he couldn’t seem to wipe the smile off of his face. How could he, when Jisung was laughing that belly laugh of his, clapping his hands together and nearly collapsing in glee at whatever dumb joke their friend had just told them. Normally Hyunjin would be mirroring him, flailing to the ground in dramatic fashion, but he was so focused on the creases in Jisung’s smile that he didn’t even hear the punchline. 

They had spent the first part of the evening playing drinking games; Hyunjin was a clear pro at beer pong while Jisung seemed more proficient with quarters. As Seungmin finished downing the last drink in a heated game of stack cup, they had decided to join their friends dancing in the living room. Jisung was trying to match Felix’s fortnite dance moves while Hyunjin had stripped off his sparkling jacket to properly execute some body roll combinations with Minho. On the other side of the room, Changbin was perfecting a bizarre dance move of his own creation that mimicked riding a horse, and the entire room erupted in cheers when his last gallop matched the beat drop perfectly. 

When a slower song came on, Hyunjin glanced over to see who had changed the playlist and found Jeongin grinning wildly at him, Chan’s phone in his hand. He recognized Khalid’s _Stay_ coming through the speakers and saw Jisung rushing over to him. Of course. Jisung loved Khalid. 

“Aren’t you going to dance with me?” Jsung had asked cheekily. “Or are you too busy body rolling?”

Hyunjin rolled his eyes, but pulled the blonde toward him. He let his hands ghost over Jisung’s waist as they swayed side-to-side, and Jisung reached up to loop his hands around the back of Hyunjin’s neck. They were so close that he could see the flecks of silver in Jisung’s smudged black eyeliner and smell the cologne he had sprayed on his dark blue v-neck and for a moment Hyunjin worried that he would forget how to breathe.

When the song ended, they found their way to the kitchen for another drink. Jisung and a girl engaged in a heated debate over the pronunciation of the word “gif” and Hyunjin watched as his friend fiddled with the charm on his necklace, a small key, hanging at the end of the silver chain. He was honestly starting to get tired of the drunken yelling in the apartment, and wanted some fresh air. When the blonde met his eyes, he raised his eyebrows at Hyunjin before taking his hand and muttering to the girl, “We’ll be back in a bit.”

He pulled Hyunjin down the hallway to the window and they stepped out onto the fire escape, the sounds of New Year’s Eve hitting their ears with fervor. Three different songs were fighting for dominance, competing beats blasting throughout the street from the clubs full of people celebrating. While they weren’t able to see Times Square very clearly from the apartment, there was an unmistakable magic in the air as the two boys clinked their beers together, taking a swig and soaking in the moment. 

“How did you know I needed a break?” Hyunjin asked with a smile.

“I just know you,” Jisung winked. “Are you having fun?” 

Hyunjin nodded. “Of course. I always have fun with you.”

Jisung snorted, but the flush on his cheeks showed that he was pleased. “I meant the party,”

“The party is great, but it’s kind of like any other party with super loud music and lots of alcohol. All that’s left is for Seungmin to drunk-call animal shelters and try to adopt every dog, or for Jeongin to break into a ballad.”

Jisung took another small sip of his beer, shrugging his shoulders. 

“This party feels different, somehow,” he said softly.

As he looked out at the twinkling city, Hyunjin could suddenly feel the soft weight of a hand in his. His heart stuttered as he felt Jisung softly stroke the back of his hand with his thumb. They didn’t usually hold hands this long, and he could tell that Jisung was nervous because he was chewing at his bottom lip. He felt a fierce fondness settle comfortably in his chest, and squeezed Jisung’s hand gently. 

“Yeah,” Hyunjin said. “This one feels different,”

**11:55 PM**

Everyone had gathered in the living room. The TV was turned up to an ungodly volume, with everyone filling a flute to the brim with champagne to toast the year away. Hyunjin wasn’t sure why he was so nervous- it’s not like it’s _required_ to have a New Year’s kiss. Even if he wanted it- and he very clearly wanted it- there was still a part of him that wondered if this was all a big mistake. Maybe Jisung was just really flirty with his friends, maybe this was just two friends spending a holiday together, maybe it didn’t really mean _anything_. He desperately wanted to read the last page of this book, see what the conclusion would be. The anticipation was killing him.

Before he could panic any longer, Jisung was back by his side, smiling and handing him a glass. Minho was aggressively blowing a noisemaker and Changbin was rapping the countdown, but it was hard to stress too much when the bubbles in his drink were popping gently and Jisung was leaning into his side. Hyunjin was certain that if the party wasn’t so loud, Jisung would be able to hear his heart beating at an alarming rate.

Then, before he could properly prepare, everyone was counting down the final seconds. The last minute of the year was ticking away in front of his eyes and there was a beautiful boy tucked under his arm and he just felt so lucky to have had this year with his friends that he almost teared up. The countdown grew in volume. 

“ _Three_!” 

Hyunjin considered taking a sip right at midnight so he didn’t have to worry about whether or not he’s going to kiss Jisung. His friend. His confidant. The boy he’d somehow fallen in love with over the course of the year.

“ _Two_!” 

He was sure that he would suffocate, the air knocked out of his lungs by the uncertainty of it all. The short blonde next to him was gleefully counting down the final moments with their friends, pointing wildly at Felix and giggling when the freckled boy drained his glass early. 

“ _One_!” 

In that moment, he decided that it wasn’t worth humiliating himself if he was wrong. He saw the entire year pass by his eyes, this amazing friendship he had built with a person that had quickly became his best friend. Even if it stung, he could handle quietly harbouring this love for his friend in secret, if it meant he got to keep him in his life. No matter how much he wanted to be with him.

“ _HAPPY NEW YEAR_!”

When the ball finally dropped, a few things happened all at once. Suddenly, everyone was screaming and Hyunjin turned to look at Jisung, to tell him that it’s okay if he doesn’t want to kiss him, but then Jisung was looking at him with a smile so big his eyes had turned into crescents and he was leaning in and _oh my god_ Hyunjin couldn’t breathe and then their lips touched and everything went. . . quiet.

_This is what it was always supposed to feel like._

Hyunjin felt Jisung reach up and cup his cheek gently, like he was afraid that he would break under the pressure of so much affection at once. It took a second for his brain to catch up with the moment, but when it did he leaned in and pressed his lips firmly against Jisung’s. He could feel the boy smile against his lips, the scent of cinnamon and cloves blanketing Hyunjin in everything that was Jisung. He was such a goner. 

It was soft and sweet and his heart was racing, but everything just felt so completely _right_ in that moment that Hyunjin couldn’t bring himself to feel embarrassed that he was kissing his friend for the first time right there, in the living room at a party, in front of everyone they knew.

He heard a camera shutter go off, and the flash of light seemed to break the moment. As he pulled away, suddenly everything was loud again- the music blasting and people blowing noisemakers and loud cheers resounding off the walls. Hyunjin looked up to see that their friends were indeed looking at them, but judging by the smiles on their faces it was clear that he was not the only one who had been waiting for this to happen. After all, some of them were also holding another pair of hands in their own, so they had little room to talk about kissing a friend.

Before he could formulate a proper sentence, he felt a hand pull him toward the hallway leading to the spare bedroom. Jisung was giggling in that way that he rarely showed other people, and Hyunjin could feel his heart swelling in his chest at the sound. As they rounded the corner, Jisung turned back to him and said, “You have no idea how long I’ve been wanting to do that.”

In the seconds before their lips touch again, Hyunjin was once again overcome with the feeling that this is what kissing somebody was supposed to feel like. He wasn’t a blushing, innocent boy; he had had partners in the past that had complimented him and gushed over his accomplishments and worshiped his body. But while every person he had been with had felt exciting, feeling Jisung trace the muscles under his shirt and kiss him against a doorway was overwhelming in a completely new way. This wasn’t just some guy. This was Jisung. _His_ Jisung, hopefully. 

Jisung was gorgeous and experienced and exciting, that was all true. But Hyunjin didn’t just want Jisung’s exciting moments. He wanted his annoying quirks, the way that he had to listen to music to fall asleep at night. He wanted his frustrations with life, how he hated when people underestimated him. He wanted a set of Jisung’s pajamas tucked neatly into Hyunjin’s drawers, ready for whenever he stayed the night. 

He also wanted his midnights, of course, but he wanted the lazy mornings, too. He wanted to see how Jisung threw his head back when he laughed, the way his mouth made a little “o” shape when he was surprised, and how he would always hold Hyunjin’s hand when they were walking through a big crowd- even when his palms got a little sweaty. 

Suddenly, for the first time, he doesn’t want to read the last page. He didn’t need to. Right now, it didn’t really matter what would happen in the end because here, now, Jisung was looking at him like he hung the moon. The door shut behind them and his back hit the soft bed, and Jisung was hovering over him with so much adoration in his eyes that it could have made Hyunjin cry.

“Is this okay, Hyunjin-ah?” he asked. Because of course Jisung would ask, even with Hyunjin clearly putty in his hands, because that’s just the kind of guy he was. He was confident and forward, but always kind and gracious. 

“More than okay,” Hyunjin said softly. “Come here,”

Before Hyunjin could overthink it anymore, his shirt was pulled over his head and soft hands were tracing brand new shapes into his hips and soft lips were chasing his.

**7AM - New Year’s Day**

When Hyunjin woke up, there was a soft quiet blanketing the apartment. He reached out, only to find that the other side of the bed was empty. He allowed himself one moment of panic before he made his way into the living room and found Jisung in the kitchen, making a pot of coffee. 

“Hey,” he said softly, clearly trying not to wake their friends passed out in the living room. “I made us some coffee.”

Hyujin heard gentle snoring from a pile of limbs in the living room as he took a step toward the kitchen. Chan and Jeongin had claimed the oversized chairs with Felix, Changbin, Seungmin, and Minho in a dogpile on the floor, a quilt thrown over the bunch haphazardly. 

“Hi,” Jisung replied. He smiled at him, eyeliner smudged from the night before, and handed him a mug of coffee with trails of steam rising from the top. Jisung reached out the hand not wrapped around his own cup, pulling Hyunjin’s fingers into his own. They were both in boxers and undershirts, their carefully cultivated outfits from the night before crumpled somewhere on the ground. While Jisung was normally very fashionable, Hyunjin couldn’t help but think he was the most beautiful like this- early in the morning, hair a wild mess, raw and real. 

Jisung led Hyunjin over to the window that they could watch the aftermath of another New Year’s celebration. It was overcast, a grey sky looming over the city. They could see people in the streets walking home, women holding their heels in their hands and their heads thrown back in laughter. Some employees were sweeping the sidewalks in front of their shops, trying to gather as much of the confetti as possible. They pointed out some of the more exciting outfits to one another, giggling in hushed tones before falling into a comfortable silence. 

They drank their coffee in front of the window slowly, savoring the way that the warm liquid relaxed them. Under their feet, Hyunjin noticed some glitter on the hardwood floors sparkling up at him. He knew that they needed to talk about the night before, but he didn’t want to break the peace of the quiet. A few candles had burned down to the wick, so Hyunjin started picking at the wax coating the table before speaking. 

“Do you wanna sit outside with me, Ji?”

Jisung nodded, finishing off his coffee. Taking both mugs in his hand, he walked over to the kitchen to place them in the sink. As he returned, Hyunjin saw him he pluck a photo off of the counter, looking at it with a smile and a blush rising to his cheeks. Hyunjin grabbed a blanket from the floor before talking Jisung’s hand in his own, guiding him out onto the fire escape. 

They sat in the same spots they had the night before, only this time they shared a blanket rather than beers. Jisung pulled his corner of the blanket under his chin and cleared his throat. He clearly wanted to say something, but couldn’t seem to get the words out. After a few moments of wrestling with himself, he silently handed the photo to Hyunjin. It was a Polaroid of him and Jisung, kissing at midnight the evening before. 

Looking at it from the perspective of whatever friend had taken the photo, Hyunjin could now see how closely they had been pressed together. The blonde boy was on his tiptoes, with one hand on Hyunjin’s cheek and the other with fingers tangled in his hair. It made Hyunjin smile, but that little flicker of fear must have kept his smile from reaching his eyes because Jisung reached over to pull on a lock of his hair to get his attention. 

“What’s up, Jin?” he asked. 

Hyunjin sighed. “Just thinking,” 

“Thinking so early in the morning?” Jisung asked. “That’s dangerous territory,” 

Hyunjin snorted. “Don’t I know it,” 

He slipped his arms around Jisung’s waist, pulling the blanket around their shoulders as he pressed a cautious kiss behind his ear.

“What are you thinking?” Jisung asked, so quietly it was almost inaudible. Even so, Hyunjin could hear the quiver in his voice and he realized with a jolt of guilt that Jisung was _nervous._ Oh my god, he was worried that Hyunjin regretted their night together, when couldn’t be further from the truth. Hyunjin turned Jisung around in his embrace gently, and when he met his eyes he could see that they were soft and sad.

“If you regret it, I understand,” Jisung said, eyes watering. “I’m so sorry if you felt obligated to kiss me just because it was New Year’s. I get it, we’re friends, and I obviously misread some signals.”

Hyunjin shook his head, so quickly and aggressively that he could’ve given himself whiplash. Jisung’s eyebrows furrowed, confused. 

“Ji, I don’t know if you could tell- well, I’m hoping after last night you did- but I’m kind of crazy about you,” Hyunjin said. “I know it probably seems silly since we’ve just met this year but you’re already such an important part of my life and my favorite days are the ones when I get to see you. Sometimes I suck at expressing myself clearly, so I’m sorry if this is super jumbled but I want you to know that I really, really want to be with you.” 

Hyunjin could feel his heart in his throat, but he pushed away his panic to continue his confession. It was now or never. He looked up at a passing cloud while he spoke, trying to get all the words out correctly. 

“To be completely honest, my feelings for you kind of scared me at first. I’ve never really felt like this about anyone before, and the idea of feeling something so strongly and not knowing how something could end scared me. But last night was everything I’ve ever wanted, it was perfect,” he smiled. “You’re perfect,”

When he looked down at the boy in his arms, his eyes were still watery but he had a beaming, heart-shaped smile on his face. Jisung snuck a hand around his neck, pulling him down until their lips met. It was their first kiss in the daylight, Hyunjin realized, and somehow that made it more real for him. This was real. Jisung wanted him, too.

‘“You know how long I’ve been waiting for you to kiss me?” Jisung said with a wink. “You’re, like, my favorite person. I wasn’t sure you’d want to be with someone like me, cuz you know, you’re _you_.”

“What do you mean?” Hyunjin asked.

“Seriously? Have you looked in a mirror?” Jisung sighed dramatically. “And not only are you gorgeous, but you just as amazing on the inside. You’re successful and disciplined and you’ve got your life figured out in ways that I don’t yet. You’re so passionate about everything you do, and I just have so much _fun_ when I’m with you.” Jisung took Hyunjin’s hand and gently squeezed it three times.

“What does that mean?” Hyunjin asked, stroking his cheek. “The three squeezes?”

“It’s something we do in my family,” Jisung said, suddenly shyly. “When I was little, I wasn’t the best at telling my parents how I felt when we were in crowds, because big groups of people made me a little nervous. So my parents developed this system for communicating in public; the number of squeezes is a way of telling someone something. So, one squeeze means _I’m alright and I’m happy you’re here with me._ Two means _I want to leave soon_ ,”

“What does three mean?” Hyunjin asked.

Jisung’s smile was bashful. That was a new look on the usually confidant boy- Hyunjin didn’t think he had ever seen him look so nervous. 

“It means _I love you_.”

In the silence, Hyunjin could hear someone inside cleaning up the bottles from last night, glass clinking as they threw them into the recycling. He knew that the rest of his life was a mystery, that the end of his book would always be unknown and he would always have anxiety over it. However, in that moment he knew that he wanted to write out the rest of his story with the beautiful boy in front of him with the crooked tooth and kind eyes.

“Jinnie, I know you’re scared of the future,” Jisung whispered. “But I’ll always be here, holding onto you. If you’ll let me.”

As Jisung plucked a fleck of glitter from his hair, tracing the shape of his cheek, Hyunjin believed him. No matter what the future held, this beautiful boy in front of him was willing to walk through it all with him. He took a deep breath and squeezed Jisung’s hands. Three times. 

“I love you, too.” 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading my work! You can find me on twitter @this_is_mk_
> 
> Please consider leaving a comment if you have time, It absolutely makes my day! & if you'd like to help contribute to my caffeine-fueled writing sessions, you can do so [here ♥](https://ko-fi.com/thisismk)  
> I really appreciate you reading :)
> 
> All the best,  
> MK


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